Stacking the Shelves – May 12, 2019

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly feature all about sharing your good luck in book acquisitions! So here’s what came my way since my last post!

It’s been a while since I posted a book haul post. I’ve been requesting very little lately until I get caught up a bit and get back in the swing of things. I’ve been doing better reading this past month, so am more likely to get to some of these unsolicited one. And some of them look quite good!

Received for Review

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I love the Stranger Things show so much, and have enjoyed the other books. This one gives the backstory of Jim Hopper, which sounds pretty cool! Many thanks to Del Rey for the review copy!

Darkness on the Edge of Town by Adam Christopher
Published by Del Rey on May 28, 2019
Pages: 416

   

Chief Jim Hopper reveals long-awaited secrets to Eleven about his old life as a police detective in New York City, confronting his past before the events of the hit show Stranger Things.

Christmas, Hawkins, 1984. All Chief Jim Hopper wants is to enjoy a quiet first Christmas with Eleven, but his adopted daughter has other plans. Over Hopper’s protests, she pulls a cardboard box marked “New York” out of the basement—and the tough questions begin. Why did Hopper leave Hawkins all those years ago? What does “Vietnam” mean? And why has he never talked about New York?

Although he’d rather face a horde of demogorgons than talk about his own past, Hopper knows that he can’t deny the truth any longer. And so begins the story of the incident in New York—the last big case before everything changed. . . .

Summer, New York City, 1977. Hopper is starting over after returning home from Vietnam. A young daughter, a caring wife, and a new beat as an NYPD detective make it easy to slip back into life as a civilian. But after shadowy federal agents suddenly show up and seize the files about a series of brutal, unsolved murders, Hopper takes matters into his own hands, risking everything to discover the truth.

Soon Hopper is undercover among New York’s notorious street gangs. But just as he’s about to crack the case, a blackout rolls across the boroughs, plunging Hopper into a darkness deeper than any he’s faced before.

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Pirates? Escaping unwanted marriages? Yes, please! I am planning to make time for this one as it sounds fun and I enjoyed the other books I’ve read by Jensen. My thanks to Tor Teen for sending me a copy for review!

Dark Shores (Dark Shores, #1) by Danielle L. Jensen
Also by this author: Stolen Songbird
Published by Tor Teen on May 7, 2019
Pages: 368

   

High seas adventure, blackmail, and meddling gods meet in Dark Shores, a thrilling first novel in a fast-paced new YA fantasy series by USA Today bestselling author Danielle L. Jensen.

In a world divided by meddlesome gods and treacherous oceans, only the Maarin possess the knowledge to cross the Endless Seas. But they have one mandate: East must never meet West.

A PIRATE WITH A WILL OF IRON

Teriana is the second mate of the Quincense and heir to the Maarin Triumvirate. Her people are born of the seas and the keepers of its secrets, but when her closest friend is forced into an unwanted betrothal, Teriana breaks her people’s mandate so her friend might escape—a choice with devastating consequences.

A SOLDIER WITH A SECRET

Marcus is the commander of the Thirty-Seventh, the notorious legion that has led the Celendor Empire to conquer the entire East. The legion is his family, but even they don’t know the truth he’s been hiding since childhood. It’s a secret he’ll do anything to protect, no matter how much it costs him – and the world.

A DANGEROUS QUEST

When an Empire senator discovers the existence of the Dark Shores, he captures Teriana’s crew and threatens to reveal Marcus’s secret unless they sail in pursuit of conquest, forcing the two into an unlikely—and unwilling—alliance. They unite for the sake of their families, but both must decide how far they are willing to go, and how much they are willing to sacrifice.

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Thisn one sounds a bit different, slightly strange and mysterious. I would need to be in the right mood for this one I think, as I don’t always do well with “weird”, this one sound like it could go either way for me.  My thanks to DAW Books for sending the copy for review consideration!

The Master of Dreams (The Dreamscape Trilogy #1) by Mike Resnick
Published by Daw Books on April 16, 2019
Pages: 294

   

Opening a new fantasy trilogy from Hugo award winner Resnick, this novel offers an adventure through space and time as Eddie Raven tries to outrun the dark forces pursuing him.

Eddie Raven isn't quite sure what's happening to him--and he's in a race to find out before it kills him.

His adventures begin with a shooting in a very strange shop in Manhattan--but soon he finds himself the owner of a very familiar bar in Casablanca. By the time he adjusts to that reality, he's suddenly become one of several undersized people helping a young woman search for a wizard. And after confronting the wizard, he somehow finds himself in Camelot.

But as he rushes to solve the mystery of his many appearances, a larger threat looms. Because someone or something is stalking him through time and space with deadly intent....

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I loved Blood Song, but when I looked back, I never actually read the third book in the trilogy after hearing so many negative responses to it. I guess I decided to stop while I was ahead? That said, this is a new book featuring Vaelin Al Sorna so it is tempting. I may need to figure out if I need to finish the trilogy or if I’d be OK skipping that last book I’ve not read yet. My thanks to Ace Books for the early copy!

The Wolf's Call (Raven's Blade #1) by Anthony Ryan
Also by this author: Blood Song, Tower Lord
Published by Ace Books on July 23, 2019
Pages: 432

   

Anthony Ryan's debut novel Blood Song--the first book of the Raven's Shadow series--took the fantasy world by storm. Now, he returns to the world of this acclaimed series with The Wolf's Call, which begins a thrilling new story of razor-sharp action and epic adventure.

Peace never lasts. Vaelin Al Sorna is a living legend, his name known across the Realm. It was his leadership that overthrew empires, his blade that won hard-fought battles - and his sacrifice that defeated an evil more terrifying than anything the world had ever seen. He won titles aplenty, only to cast aside his earned glory for a quiet life in the Realm's northern reaches.

Yet whispers have come from across the sea - rumours of an army called the Steel Horde, led by a man who believes himself a god. Vaelin has no wish to fight another war, but when he learns that Sherin, the woman he lost long ago, has fallen into the Horde's grasp, he resolves to confront this powerful new threat.

To this end, Vaelin travels to the realms of the Merchant Kings, a land ruled by honor and intrigue. There, as the drums of war thunder across kingdoms riven by conflict, Vaelin learns a terrible truth: that there are some battles that even he may not be strong enough to win.

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I may not read as much Science Fiction as Fantasy, but I do enjoy a good misfit crew! Many thanks to Harper Voyager for the review copy! 

Winds of Marque: Blackwood Virtue by Bennett R. Coles
Published by Harper Voyager on April 16, 2019
Pages: 368

   

The first novel in an exciting science fiction series—Master and Commander in space—a swashbuckling space adventure in which a crew of misfit individuals in the king’s navy are sent to dismantle a dangerous ring of pirate raiders.

In a dense star cluster, the solar winds blow fiercely. The star sailing ship HMSS Daring is running at full sheet with a letter of marque allowing them to capture enemy vessels involved in illegal trading. Sailing under a false flag to protect the ship and its mission, Daring’s crew must gather intelligence that will lead them to the pirates’ base.

Posing as traders, Daring’s dashing second-in-command Liam Blackwood and brilliant quartermaster Amelia Virtue infiltrate shady civilian merchant networks, believing one will lead them to their quarry.

But their mission is threatened from within their own ranks when Daring’s enigmatic captain makes a series of questionable choices, and rumblings of discontent start bubbling up from below decks, putting the crew on edge and destroying morale. On top of it all, Liam and Amelia must grapple with their growing feelings for each other.

Facing danger from unexpected quarters that could steer the expedition off course, Blackwood and Virtue must identify the real enemy threat and discover the truth about their commander—and their mission—before Daring falls prey to the very pirates she’s meant to be tracking.

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I initially sort of just glanced over this one as it says “Book 4”, but the publicist contacted me to let me know its actually a good entry point for the series, so I may give it a try as it sounds like its probably action packed with some forbidden love thrown in as well. My thanks again to Harper Voyager!

The Emperor's Fist by Jay Allan
Published by Harper Voyager on August 20, 2019
Pages: 336

   

In this thrilling new installment in the Far Stars saga, a reluctant hero with a bloody past must reunite with an old love to battle an evil emperor willing to destroy all their worlds if he cannot control them.

When the Far Stars came under imperial attack, Astra Lucerne—the daughter and successor of the Far Stars’ greatest conqueror—Marshal Augustin Lucerne—rallied her father’s confederation forces to defend their worlds. They were joined in the fight by former imperial general Arkarin Blackhawk, a warrior whose skills and brutality made him infamous, and who has, for two decades, sought the redemption he knows is unreachable.

Now, with the imperial foothold in the sector eliminated, the Far Stars is free and almost united. While Astra’s forces continue to depose local tyrants and warlords, Ark and his crew have slipped back into the shadows. Though his heart belongs to Astra, Ark cannot get too close. His imperial conditioning remains under control, but it is still volatile, and the temptation of power threatens to unleash the dark compulsions that made him the most merciless of the emperor’s servants. He cannot risk allowing Astra to see the darkness inside him.

But while the battle has been won, the war may not be over. A petty smuggler makes a discovery that can enable the emperor to strike back and crush the resistance—unless Ark and Astra join forces again to stop him.

This was an impulse request because it just sounded like a fun read (I read it almost right away, and turns out it was a good pick). My review for this one will be up soon. My thanks to Tor!

An Illusion of Thieves (Chimera, #1) by Cate Glass
Also by this author: An Illusion of Thieves
Published by Tor Books on May 21, 2019
Pages: 352

   

In Cantagna, being a sorcerer is a death sentence.

Romy escapes her hardscrabble upbringing when she becomes courtesan to the Shadow Lord, a revolutionary noble who brings laws and comforts once reserved for the wealthy to all. When her brother, Neri, is caught thieving with the aid of magic, Romy's aristocratic influence is the only thing that can spare his life—and the price is her banishment.

Now back in Beggar’s Ring, she has just her wits and her own long-hidden sorcery to help her and Neri survive. But when a plot to overthrow the Shadow Lord and incite civil war is uncovered, only Romy knows how to stop it. To do so, she’ll have to rely on newfound allies—a swordmaster, a silversmith, and her own thieving brother. And they'll need the very thing that could condemn them all: magic.

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